Many electronic devices include an LCD panel to display images to a user. The LCD panel may be used to display images, video, or a user interface for the device. A typical display device includes an LCD panel and a means for dispersing light through the pixels (e.g., a trio of liquid crystal elements associated with red, green, and blue color filters) of the LCD panel. The backlights used for generating the light dispersed through the pixels may be CFLs (Compact Fluorescent Lamps), LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes), or electroluminescent material. These backlights may be arranged at an edge of the LCD panel and the light may be dispersed through the pixels using a diffuser that spreads the light more evenly over the entire surface of the LCD panel. Alternately, the backlights may be arranged in a matrix directly behind the LCD panel.
Most of the power required to display images on the LCD panel is used for activating the backlight. Many conventional devices today are powered via batteries (i.e., cellular phones, tablet computers, etc.) that have a limited storage capacity. Thus, conserving power consumed by the display is important for extending the battery life of the device. One power saving technique utilized by today's high definition LCD televisions uses localized dimming to increase the contrast of displayed images (i.e., adjusting the backlight in specific regions of the LCD panel to lower the light dispersed through pixels associated with darker portions of an image). While this technique has proven useful when applied to video displayed on today's high end televisions, localized backlight control has not been implemented on smaller and cheaper LCD displays included in many of today's consumer electronic devices. Consumer electronic devices having displays with a backlight that is always activated consume more power that drains the battery of the device. Thus, there is a need for addressing these issues and/or other issues associated with the prior art.